Puncturing tool



March 11, 1958 w. B. BEECHER 2,825,966

PUNCTURING TOOL Filed May 2, 1956 INVENTOR.

BRYCE BEECHER 2,825,966 PUNCTURING TOOL William Bryce Beecher, Troy Township, Oakland County,lVlich.

This invention relates to a tool for puncturing tin plate and the like and its most particular aspect concerns a tool or utensil of the indicated type which is especially adapted for puncturing metal containers as beer and condensed milk cans.

The most commonly used beer can opener consists of a simple lever suitably formed at one end to puncture the can and carrying near such end a tang designed to hook under the head around the top of the can to fulcrum the lever. The puncture is achieved by pulling upon the fulcrumed lever so that the puncturing portion thereof is forced downwardly through the metal to produce a triangular cut.

Although inexpensive to the point that it may be given away as a premium, this prior opener is something less than satisfactory for the purpose. The principal fault thereof resides in the fact that an undue amount of force is required to make the cut and unless the can is grasped very firmly it is prone to slip, with spilling and foaming over a portion of the contents.

My invention has as a principal object to provide an opener requiring substantially less force in use and which is otherwise superior to the conventional article.

Another object is to provide such an opener which is adapted to the opening of metal containers, as condensed milk cans, which are manufactured without beads at the ends.

Still another object is to provide an opener in the use of which the required force is applied downwardly rather than upwardly as heretofore.

Although my opener is relatively involved as compared to the prior opener, and hence is somewhat more expensive to manufacture, the additional cost is not excessive; indeed is negligible when measured in terms of the convenience it affords.

Generally described, the opener herein is characterized in that the same comprises an operating portion and a puncturing portion pivotally supported on a suitable base member shaped as dictated by the shape of the can. The puncturing portion is so disposed, formed and arranged relative to the operating portion that it rotates in the same direction as tthe operating portion in the making of the puncture. This distinguishes the opener from the opener described in my copending application Serial No. 527,915 filed August 12, 1955, and is advantageous in that it does away with any tendency of the opener to pry itself forward off the can. This is particularly important where the can has a bead gripped by the base member. In such case, my new opener actually serves to enhance or promote tight engagement of the bead gripping rim of the base with the bead of the can, since the prying effect is in the direction away from the bead.

I shall particularly describe my invention in terms of the embodiments thereof illustrated by the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 shows the opener in side elevation applied to a can having a bead;

nite rates Patent Figure 2. is a plan view of the opener of Figure l, the same again being shown as applied to a beaded can;

Figure 3 illustrates the principle of operation of the opener of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a section on the line indicated in Figure 3;

Figure 5 shows in side elevation another form of opener conforming to the invention, such opener having a base adapting it for application to headless cans;

Figure 6 is a plan of the last mentioned opener; and

Figure 7 illustrates the method of operation of the modified opener.

Referring first to Figures 1 and 2, the numeral 10 denotes a base member which, in the caseofthe particular embodiment, is fabricated as a generally U-shaped part (as viewed in plan) preferably extending to a point on the can top substantially short of the center thereof and having a width exceeding that of the other parts of the opener. Member 16 is most suitably manufactured by a stamping and forming operation providing the arcuate bead-gripping edge 14, which may be provided with saw teeth if desired to further the engagement with the undersurface of the bead. Also, incident to such operation there are provided two apertures for the accommodation of a pin 20.

Pin 20 extends through a flange 23 (Fig. 4) carried by a lever 24 including a puncturing portion 26 generally formed in the manner of the cutting portion of the conventional opener hereinbefore mentioned.

The operation of the described opener is believed obvious from Figure 3 taken in conjunction with Figure 1. Suffice it to say, that when lever member 24 is forced downwardly to rotate the same clockwise the puncturing portion 26 is rotated in the same direction to make the puncture. The parts are restored to their relative positions shown in Figure l incident to application of the tool to the next can to be opened.

In the modification illustrated by Figures 5-7, base member 30 is formed on a full circle and has crimped thereto a sleeve 32 extending downwardly of the headless can for a distance substantially as illustrated. This sleeve, which is grasped by the free hand during the opening operation, may be formed, with advantage, of natural or synthetic rubber compounded to a stiffness such that it will not tend to unduly fold or buckle thereby to complicate application of the tool to the can.

Whereas in the embodiment first described the operating and puncturing portions of the opener are fabricated as one piece, the opener shown by Figs. 5-7 includes separate levers 34 and 36 independently pivotally supported by the base 30 through tangs providing journals 38 and 46, respectively, extending upwardly from the web portion 42 of the base member. Pins 44 and 46, accommodated in the journals, extend through flanges 48 and 50 integral, respectively, With the puncturing lever 34 and the operating lever 36. The latter will be seen as having a strengthening ridge 37 and as doubly bent at its end leftward of its pivot so that the same engages the undersurface of the puncturing lever in the puncturing operation (Fig. 7). Here again, the clockwise rotation of the operating portion of the opener induces clockwise rotation of the puncturing portion, yielding a similar cut or puncture.

It should be apparent that my invention answers fully to the objects thereof; also that it is subject to substantial modification without departure from the basic concept.

What I claim is:

1. In a can opener, a base member adapted to engage the top of the can, a puncturing element pivotally supported by said base member, lever means independently pivotally supported by said base member at a point inward of the pivotal support for said puncturing element, having regard to the disposition of the parts in application of Patented Mar. ll, 1958 3 the opener, said lever means being rotatable to bring about puncturing movement of said puncturing element through surface engagement therewith outward of the point of pivotal support for said puncturing element.

2, In a can opener, the combination of a base member adapted to engage the top of the can and a pair of levers independently pivotally supported by said base member, one of said levers being formed as a puncturing element, the other being of substantially greater length and having its pivotal support located inwardly of the pivotal support for said one of said levers having regard to disposition of the parts in application of the opener, said other of said levers being downwardly rotatable to bring about puncturing movement of said one of said levers through engagement with the undersurface thereof outward of the pivotal support therefor.

3. In a can opener, a base member adapted to engage the rim of the can and a pair of levers independently the pivotally supported by said base member, one of said levers being formed as a puncturing element and being located on said base member near an edge thereof, the other being of substantially greater length and being adapted by surface engagement with said one of said levers to force the same into puncturing engagement with the can top, such action being marked by downward rotation of the said other lever and by rotation of the said one lever in a direction tending to pry the near edge of said base member into more secure engagement with the corresponding edge of the can.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

